Why the South Carolina Gamecocks are ready to compete for another national championship

The South Carolina Gamecocks defeated the UConn Huskies to advance to the NCAA Championship Game. | NCAA Photos via Getty Images The South Carolina Gamecocks will play for their fourth NCAA national championship under head coach Dawn Staley, having just upset the No. 1-overall seed UConn Huskies in the Final Four.

And while the Gamecocks look a little different this season than they have in years past, there’s no question that Staley has once again assembled a title-worthy roster that’s peaking at the right time. The atmosphere in the arena may have been sullied by the postgame antics of UConn head coach Geno Auriemma, but it ultimately took nothing away from the fact that South Carolina had thoroughly outplayed the best team in the country. It wasn’t the prettiest basketball game ever played (the two teams combined to shoot just 34.

2 percent from the field), but as things wore on, South Carolina seemed to gain composure and confidence while UConn unraveled—a stark contrast to last year’s national championship game, when the Huskies defeated the Gamecocks without much issue. View this post on Instagram You can bet the lessons learned from last year’s tournament had been fresh in Staley’s mind as her team embarked on their most recent journey, and while the Gamecocks did end up getting revenge against their rivals, one task still remains. South Carolina will face the UCLA Bruins in the 2026 NCAA title game, and they’ll have to dig deep one more time to achieve their biggest goal.

The Gamecocks’ guards set the tone If there’s been one common theme among the championship-winning Gamecock teams of seasons past, it’s that they all had elite frontcourt play. From A’ja Wilson and Alaina Coates to Aliyah Boston and Kamilla Cardoso, South Carolina has never lacked for size, and that remains true in 2026; multi-talented forward Joyce Edwards is one of the nation’s best sophomores, and Madina Okot brings the rebounding and shot-blocking one would expect from a 6-foot-6 center. The heart and soul of this South Carolina team, though, lies in its backcourt.